SRIMAD BHAGAVAD GITA - Esamskriti.com

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Arjuna was overpowered by an emotional upheaval. He suddenly started exhibitingseveral symptoms of weakness both physically and psychologically. He was afflictedwith great depression of mind masquerading as compassion. Arjuna himself describedhis physical symptoms in graphic terms. It was of the nature of a Fever of UnknownOrigin (F.U.O.) or a Bhava-roga in Sanskrit. This disease is the oldest known tohuman kind. Its origin is traced to ajnana or avidya or ignorance in the Vedanta ofHinduism. The divine potion or elixir (amrita) that cures this disease is Jnana orKnowledge, grace of God, issuing from self-surrender, prayer and freedom fromdesire (bhakti, sharnagati, prapatti, nirvasana) and so on.What makes the Gita, a unique medicine of bhava-roga is that it contains all theingredients stated above, fit to be consumed by peoples of all ages, climes, genders -monastic or lay. The Arjuna syndrome, analyzed and diagnosed by the masterphysician Sri Krishna is the starting point of the preparation of this unique brew.Adi Shankaracharya’s description of the Arjuna syndrome is simple and remarkable.It is not that Arjuna was unwilling to do his duty as the Army General when he camefor war. Arjuna is a picture of courage and self-confidence before the war. In theverses 21 and 22 of the 1 st chapter he roars like an impatient lion waiting to pounce onits prey.Afterwards, Arjuna’s mood suddenly changes. At what point of time and for whatreasons did he become a victim of the Arjuna syndrome?Verses 28-46 of the 1 st Chapter, if properly analyzed word for word, give us the clue.Arjuna saw in the huge armies his own people, (svajana)-fathers, grandfathers,brothers, teachers, friends etc., and was overcome with pity. The key word here issvajana, people who are one’s very own. It may be noted that Arjuna uses the word‘svajana’ four times in these verses. Arjuna’s lament and depression are rooted in thisfeeling of svajanatva - one’s own-ness. Arjuna’s ego that strongly felt this attachmentengendered by possessiveness - own ness or svajanatva- plunged him into the abyss ofsorrow and delusion (shoka and moha)This pathological aberration of Arjuna can be traced to psychological roots that definethe Arjuna syndrome. Arjuna displayed feelings of grief and delusion caused byignorance and confused understanding and his attachment for and the sense ofseparation from dominion, the elders, sons, friends, kinsmen, relatives - all thesearising from the notion that ‘I am theirs and they are mine’. It was whendiscriminative faculty (knowledge) was thus over powered by grief and delusion thatArjuna, who had of himself naturally and spontaneously been engaged in battle aswarrior’s duty, abstained from fighting and prepared to lead a mendicant’s life whichwas a duty alien to him.It is thus that in the case of all creatures whose minds come under the sway of thedefects of sorrow, delusion, etc. there verily follows, as a matter of course,abandoning their own duties and resorting to prohibited ones.Even when they engage in their own duties their conduct in speech, thought and deedis certainly motivated by hankering for rewards, and is accompanied by egoism.
Egoism consists in thinking that one is the agent of some work and therefore theenjoyer of its reward.Such being the case, the cycle of births and deaths, characterized by passing throughdesirable and undesirable births, and meeting with happiness, sorrow, etc. from theaccumulation of virtue and vice, continues unendingly. Thus, sorrow and delusion arethe sources of the cycles of births and deaths. Their cessation comes from nothingother than the knowledge of the Self which is preceded by the renunciation of allattachment to duties. Hence, wishing to impart that (knowledge of the Self) for thewelfare of the whole world, Lord Vasudeva, making Arjuna the medium, said, 'Yougrieve for those who are not to be grieved for,' etc. (Chapter 2)Thus the Arjuna syndrome analyzed could be reduced to the following flow-chart.Ignorance→confused understanding→feeling of I and Mine (ahamkara andmamakara) →sorrow and delusion (shoka and moha)→overpowering ofdiscriminative faculty→ abandoning one’s own duty (svadharma) and adopting alienduty (para dharma), even in own duty craving for reward and egoism→accumulationof merit and demerit ( dharma and adharma)→endless cycle of birth and death,samsara, consisting of getting the experiences of the desirable and the undesirable,pleasure and pain.The remedy prescribed by Krishna is Self-Knowledge (atma jnana) which He startsunfolding from the verse 11 of the 2 nd chapter. This is the greatest relevance of theBhagavad Gita for the modern world particularly to the youth - stress filled, strifetorn, panic stricken, and conflict ridden, modern world. Atma jnana is the source ofstrength, infinite power, eternal knowledge and wisdom.Like Arjuna we too are weak, we too have no will. The will has been lost in ournever-ending debate ‘What to do and what not to do? What is proper and what isimproper?’ All the ground beneath our feet is slipping like quick-sand. The Arjuna inus is in suspended animation, is in limbo. We too require a shock treatment.Krishna is holding Arjuna’s hands and starting to resolve his problems from the veryplace where Arjuna is. That is why the Gita is very dynamic psychological system. AsArjuna evolves step by step the Gita also rises and unfolds gradually. Krishna reformsArjuna at Arjuna’s level. All the time in the Gita, Arjuna is the focus and not Krishna.KRISHNA, THE MASTER STRATEGISTIt is better to quote Swami Vivekananda here. He says: “I have heard about Krishna’slife. I take it for granted there must have been a man called Krishna, and his Gitashows he has left a wonderful book. He is the most rounded man I know of,wonderfully developed, equally in brain, heart and hand. Every movement of his isalive with activity, either as a gentleman, warrior, minister or something else. Great asa gentleman, as a scholar, as a poet. This all-rounded and wonderful activity andcombination of brain and heart you see in the Gita and other books. Most wonderfulheart, exquisite language and nothing can approach it anywhere.In Krishna we find two ideas stand supreme in his message. The first is the harmonyof different ideas and the second is non-attachment. A man can attain to perfection,
Page 1 and 2: SrimadBhagavad GitaIntroduction&Cha
Page 3 and 4: Introducing Srimad Bhagavad Gita:A
Page 5 and 6: Responding to Arjuna's confusion an
Page 7 and 8: he did not want to wage the battle
Page 9 and 10: Arjuna’s misunderstanding, his in
Page 11: The Gita is specially suited for th
Page 14 and 15: Sanjaya saidHaving seen the army of
Page 16 and 17: tatah shvetair hayair yukte mahati
Page 18 and 19: SRI KRISHNA ENTERS THE SCENEsanjaya
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Page 22 and 23: good conduct and right behavior. Th
Page 24 and 25: Bhagavad Gita - Chapter 1 (Part-2):
Page 28 and 29: the highest goal, sitting on a thro
Page 30 and 31: Frequently asked Questions1. Is the
Page 32 and 33: akshitah - dharma protects those wh

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